It is known to enclose sterilized dental implants in packages that will preserve sterility until opened. The packages are delivered to the clinician who elects when and where to open the package. It is also known to include in such packages carrier devices attached to the implants enabling the implant to be manipulated without directly touching it.
Placing a dental implant in the jawbone of a patient is typically the beginning of several procedures which have been developed for providing implant-supported dentition. All procedures use components, frequently referred to as an "impression coping," for transferring to the dental laboratory information about the patient's mouth in the area of the implant on which the dentition is to be supported. Until fairly recently, it has been the usual practice to delay this information-transfer step several months after installing the implant to allow the implant to "osseointegrate" with the host bone. The result is a two-stage surgical procedure; the first-stage includes the installation of the implant; the second stage involves another surgery in which the gum tissue is reopened and an impression coping is fitted to the implant to gather the needed information. Since laboratory procedures cannot begin without this information, the development of a patient's dental prosthesis was generally delayed about 3 to 6 months while the osseointegration process occurred.
Generally, the carrier has a non-rotational engagement surface (i.e. non-circular) that a dental tool engages. When the implant has external threads, the dental tool is rotated such that the rotation imparted on the combination of the carrier and the implant screws the implant into the jawbone. In some situations, however, it is necessary to have a longer carrier because the gingiva above the jawbone is thick such that only a smaller portion of the carrier is exposed through the gingiva. In that situation, clinicians often remove the standard carrier from the implant and install onto the implant a longer carrier to accommodate the thicker gingiva. However, any time the clinician touches the implant, there is a risk that the sterile surfaces on the implant may become contaminated.
Recently, a protocol was developed which includes the taking of an impression of the patient's mouth during first-stage surgery. Immediately after the implant has been installed into its final position at the site of the jawbone, the clinician removes the carrier from the implant and installs onto the implant an impression coping. Once the impression coping is installed on the implant, the clinician then applies impression material to the region to take the impression of the site in the patient's mouth. The impression would then allow for the development of a temporary, or possibly, a permanent dentition that would be attached to the implant after osseointegration. One of the problems associated with this new protocol is the potential for movement of the implant, which has been accurately placed into the patient's jawbone, caused by the attachment of the impression coping.